Tom Pocock
Encyclopedia
Thomas Allcot Guy Pocock, writing under the name Tom Pocock, (18 August 1925, London – 7 May 2007, London) was an English
biographer, war correspondent, journalist and naval historian.
and Cheltenham College
. He joined the Royal Navy
in 1943, being present at D-Day and then serving as naval "minder" to war correspondents covering the Battle of Normandy. Falling ill, by the end of 1944 he was demobbed [demobilized], and became a war correspondent at only 19 years old. He spent four years with the Hulton Press current affairs magazine group, being one of the first journalists to see Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
and learning his trade from Alan Moorehead
(later becoming his biographer). He then moved on to be a feature-writer and then Naval Correspondent on the Daily Mail
, and then (in 1952) Naval Correspondent of The Times
.
He was a foreign correspondent and special writer for the Daily Express
from 1956 to 1959, then from 1959 was feature writer, Defence Correspondent, war correspondent and finally Travel Editor on the Evening Standard
. He married Penny Casson in 1969 (they had two daughters). He won the Mountbatten Maritime Prize
in 2004.
, K.B. (who was the captor of Havana in the Seven Years War), the marine painter Nicholas Pocock
as well as his aunt Doris Pocock who was an author of girls' school stories.
Vice-Admiral George Pocock *George Pocock
Nicolas Pocock *http://www.vallejogallery.com/artist.php?name=Nicolas%20Pocock&id=370
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
biographer, war correspondent, journalist and naval historian.
Life
He was the son of the novelist and educationist Guy Pocock, who taught Lord Mountbatten at Dartmouth, and attended Westminster SchoolWestminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
and Cheltenham College
Cheltenham College
Cheltenham College is a co-educational independent school, located in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England.One of the public schools of the Victorian period, it was opened in July 1841. An Anglican foundation, it is known for its classical, military and sporting traditions.The 1893 book Great...
. He joined the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
in 1943, being present at D-Day and then serving as naval "minder" to war correspondents covering the Battle of Normandy. Falling ill, by the end of 1944 he was demobbed [demobilized], and became a war correspondent at only 19 years old. He spent four years with the Hulton Press current affairs magazine group, being one of the first journalists to see Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
Bergen-Belsen was a Nazi concentration camp in Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle...
and learning his trade from Alan Moorehead
Alan Moorehead
Alan McCrae Moorehead OBE was a war correspondent and author of popular histories, most notably two books on the nineteenth-century exploration of the Nile, The White Nile and The Blue Nile . Australian-born, he lived in England, and Italy, from 1937.-Biography:Alan Moorehead was born in...
(later becoming his biographer). He then moved on to be a feature-writer and then Naval Correspondent on the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
, and then (in 1952) Naval Correspondent of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
.
He was a foreign correspondent and special writer for the Daily Express
Daily Express
The Daily Express switched from broadsheet to tabloid in 1977 and was bought by the construction company Trafalgar House in the same year. Its publishing company, Beaverbrook Newspapers, was renamed Express Newspapers...
from 1956 to 1959, then from 1959 was feature writer, Defence Correspondent, war correspondent and finally Travel Editor on the Evening Standard
Evening Standard
The Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...
. He married Penny Casson in 1969 (they had two daughters). He won the Mountbatten Maritime Prize
Mountbatten Maritime Prize
The Mountbatten Maritime Prize is awarded annually by the Maritime Foundation to the author of a distinguished publication that has made a significant contribution to the maritime history of the United Kingdom. The prize is a piece of silver plate...
in 2004.
Famous Relatives
Tom Pocock's family included such luminaries as: Vice-Admiral Sir George PocockGeorge Pocock
Sir George Pocock, KB was a British officer of the Royal Navy. He rose to the rank of admiral.Pocock was from Chieveley in Berkshire, the son of Thomas Pocock, a chaplain in the navy. George Pocock entered the navy in 1718, serving aboard under the patronage of his maternal uncle, Captain...
, K.B. (who was the captor of Havana in the Seven Years War), the marine painter Nicholas Pocock
Nicholas Pocock
thumb|Pocock's bird's-eye-view painting of the [[Battle of Copenhagen ]]Nicholas Pocock was a British artist best known for his many detailed paintings of naval battles during the age of sail....
as well as his aunt Doris Pocock who was an author of girls' school stories.
Works
- Nelson and his world, 1967, his first book, written on his return from reporting the Aden EmergencyAden EmergencyThe Aden Emergency was an insurgency against the British crown forces in the British controlled territories of South Arabia which now form part of the Yemen. Partly inspired by Nasser's pan Arab nationalism, it began on 10 December 1963 with the throwing of a grenade at a gathering of British...
- Chelsea Reach
- Fighting General
- Stopping Napoleon
- The Terror Before TrafalgarBattle of TrafalgarThe Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
- Captain MarryatFrederick MarryatCaptain Frederick Marryat was an English Royal Navy officer, novelist, and a contemporary and acquaintance of Charles Dickens, noted today as an early pioneer of the sea story...
- Nelson's Women
- Battle for Empire: The Very First World WarSeven Years' WarThe Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
1756-63 (1998) - A Thirst for Glory, The Life of Admiral Sir Sidney Smith
- The Young Nelson in the Americas
- Horatio Nelson, runner-up for the Whitbread Biography Award of 1987.
- Remember Nelson - The Life of Captain Sir William HosteWilliam HosteCaptain Sir William Hoste, 1st Baronet KCB RN , Royal Navy captain, was the son of Dixon Hoste, rector of Godwick and Tittleshall in Norfolk...
(1977) - Rider Haggard and the Lost Empire
- Sailor King: The Life of King William IVWilliam IV of the United KingdomWilliam IV was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death...
- East and West of Suez
- Alan MooreheadAlan MooreheadAlan McCrae Moorehead OBE was a war correspondent and author of popular histories, most notably two books on the nineteenth-century exploration of the Nile, The White Nile and The Blue Nile . Australian-born, he lived in England, and Italy, from 1937.-Biography:Alan Moorehead was born in...
- 1945: The Dawn Came Up Like Thunder
- Norfolk
- Travels of a London Schoolboy, 1826-1830 (editor)
- London Walks
- Essential Venice
External links
Vice-Admiral George Pocock *George Pocock
George Pocock
Sir George Pocock, KB was a British officer of the Royal Navy. He rose to the rank of admiral.Pocock was from Chieveley in Berkshire, the son of Thomas Pocock, a chaplain in the navy. George Pocock entered the navy in 1718, serving aboard under the patronage of his maternal uncle, Captain...
Nicolas Pocock *http://www.vallejogallery.com/artist.php?name=Nicolas%20Pocock&id=370